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The Annotated Edition

WITH A COPY OF AUCASSIN AND NICOLETE by James Russell Lowell

Summary, meaning, line-by-line analysis & FAQ.

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Lowell shares a copy of the medieval French romance *Aucassin and Nicolete* with a friend, and this sonnet serves as the accompanying note.

Poet
James Russell Lowell
Themes
beauty, love, memory
The PoemFull text

WITH A COPY OF AUCASSIN AND NICOLETE

James Russell Lowell

Leaves fit to have been poor Juliet's cradle-rhyme, With gladness of a heart long quenched in mould They vibrate still, a nest not yet grown cold From its fledged burthen. The numb hand of Time Vainly his glass turns; here is endless prime; Here lips their roses keep and locks their gold; Here Love in pristine innocency bold Speaks what our grosser conscience makes a crime. Because it tells the dream that all have known Once in their lives, and to life's end the few; Because its seeds o'er Memory's desert blown Spring up in heartsease such as Eden knew; Because it hath a beauty all its own, Dear Friend, I plucked this herb of grace for you.

Public domain

Sourced from Project Gutenberg

§01Quick summary

What this poem is about

Lowell shares a copy of the medieval French romance *Aucassin and Nicolete* with a friend, and this sonnet serves as the accompanying note. He believes the timeless tale endures because it expresses the pure, innocent emotion of first love that nearly everyone feels at least once. The poem acts as a love letter to a love story — a heartfelt gift of something beautiful for someone special.

§02Themes

Recurring themes

§03Line by line

Stanza by stanza, with notes

  1. Leaves fit to have been poor Juliet's cradle-rhyme, / With gladness of a heart long quenched in mould

    Editor's note

    The opening quatrain sets the medieval romance as so tender it could have lulled Romeo and Juliet to sleep. "A heart long quenched in mould" suggests the original author is long gone and buried, yet the book still radiates warmth — like a bird's nest that retains heat after the chicks have flown. Time ("the numb hand of Time") attempts to sap it of life by turning his hourglass, but completely misses the mark.

  2. Here lips their roses keep and locks their gold; / Here Love in pristine innocency bold

    Editor's note

    The second quatrain highlights the elements that make the romance timeless: the characters remain ageless, their beauty endures, and their love is both fearless and pure. The phrase "pristine innocency bold" stands out — it's a depiction of love untouched by the world's lessons on shame. Lowell introduces a provocative contrast: the feelings and expressions of the lovers, which seem innocent, would likely be deemed scandalous or even criminal by today's moral standards. He’s advocating for the story’s openness.

  3. Because it tells the dream that all have known / Once in their lives, and to life's end the few;

    Editor's note

    The sestet shifts to three "Because" clauses that support Lowell's argument for the continued relevance of this old book. First: it conveys the dream of perfect love that everyone experiences at least once, though only a fortunate few manage to hold onto it for life. Second: similar to seeds carried by the wind across a barren desert, the story sows "heartsease" — a flower and a feeling of peace — in the reader's memory, evoking the kind of joy that existed in Eden before anything went awry.

  4. Because it hath a beauty all its own, / Dear Friend, I plucked this herb of grace for you.

    Editor's note

    The final couplet wraps up the argument neatly: the book is beautiful, period. "Herb of grace" refers to rue, a plant that has long been linked to repentance and blessing — Shakespeare mentions it in *Hamlet*. Lowell "plucks" it like a wildflower and offers it to his friend, transforming the simple act of giving a book into something personal and almost ritualistic.

§04Tone & mood

How this poem feels

Warm and quietly passionate, Lowell writes with the confidence of someone who has cherished this old story for years and is eager to share it with a friend. There's a gentle defiance woven into the poem—a readiness to challenge prudish moral judgment—but it never becomes aggressive. By the final couplet, the tone shifts to something resembling tenderness.

§05Symbols & metaphors

Symbols & metaphors

The nest not yet grown cold
The medieval book is likened to a bird's nest that retains warmth even after the birds have flown away. It symbolizes art that endures beyond its creator, offering solace long after the heart that brought it to life has ceased to beat.
The numb hand of Time / his glass
Time is depicted as a figure turning an hourglass, a classic symbol of mortality and decay. Referring to the hand as "numb" implies that Time operates mechanically, lacking emotion — and importantly, in this case, it falls short. The romance triumphs over it.
Seeds blown over Memory's desert
Memory is portrayed as a vast, barren wasteland. The images in the story act as seeds that float across it, suddenly blooming into "heartsease" — a real flower and a sense of emotional relief. This illustrates how an old book can unexpectedly bring back emotions or memories you thought were lost.
Herb of grace
Rue is a bitter herb that, in Renaissance tradition, symbolizes repentance, blessing, and remembrance. By referring to the book as an herb of grace, Lowell presents the gift as both medicinal and sacred—capable of healing while also honoring the past.
Eden
Eden symbolizes a time of innocence before guilt and shame became part of human experience. Lowell uses this idea to suggest that the romance's love is pre-lapsarian — it exists in a world where desire and joy weren't yet viewed as wrong.

§06Historical context

Historical context

*Aucassin and Nicolete* is a 13th-century French chantefable—a narrative that blends prose and verse—centering on two young lovers separated by social class and family ties. Rediscovered and translated into English during the 19th century, it became a favorite among Romantic and Victorian readers who appreciated its youthful spirit and lightness. Lowell, a prominent American literary figure of his time, penned this sonnet as a dedication to accompany a gifted copy of the romance. He was well-versed in medieval and Renaissance literature and often advocated for older works he believed had been unjustly overlooked. This sonnet belongs to a long-standing tradition of "book-gift" poems, where the act of sharing a cherished text becomes a poetic theme. Lowell's line about the lovers' speech being what "our grosser conscience makes a crime" captures the Victorian unease surrounding open expressions of desire in literature.

§07FAQ

Questions readers ask

*Aucassin and Nicolete* is a medieval French romance that tells the tale of two young lovers kept apart by their social differences. In this sonnet, Lowell argues that this timeless story still holds value today—he celebrates its lasting impact, emotional depth, and innocent audacity. The poem truly resonates when you understand it's a gift he's presenting to a friend.

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